32 man squad due to be named today.
I imagine the frontline players need this like a hole in the head at this stage of the season especially those involved in last Sumemrs Lions tour.
They shouldn’t be brought. I’d leave Wallace, Hayes, O’ Gara, O’ Connell, O’ Callaghan, O’ Driscoll and D’Arcy at home.
See how good some of these young fellas are, the likes of MacFadden, Henry, Ross, Varley, Williams, the 2 Ryans and a few others should at least be brought on the tour.
Agreed, you could throw Muldoon into that group there as well as Cronin and maybe even Carr. Give Heaslip the captaincy and let him off.
Not sure it’ll happen though. Can’t be easy, there’s beating on the way.
Oh ya, there is 30 going, i left out a few more there if i really thought about it. Muldoon is a good call, and Cronin is a must. Larry will be in with a few more we have forgotten from the plantation areas.
Heaslip is clearly the next captain.
I can’t see any of the big names being left behind really. Possibly BOD as a special case but that’s about it. I’m not sure I agree with leaving them behind either, there’s a world cup around the corner. Ideally you’d give a rest to some of these guys but this isn’t the summer for it.
POC won’t travel I’d imagine given his recent troubles, maybe as a non playing member, BOD the same perhaps? Wallace can be left behind, back row and 7 is somewhere we have options for. Yet again we’re looking at the front row and wondering what to do though.
The Irish players get plenty of rest when second string sides are sent out in the Magner’s League compared to what their peers in England and France get. There’s a World Cup next year and the strongest squad possible should be sent out this summer. They’re expected to lose and leaving the better players behind will turn that into a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Ah yeah POC won’t play but he’s injured. I mean they won’t rest anyone I don’t think.
Have to agree with Bandage here - if the team fancy themselves for the World Cup (even for a semi-final spot) then they have to go and win in the southern hemisphere. No point in sending a team and a mindset that expects to lose and then hoping to reverse that in a year’s time.
Any of the Lions on the go for a while, as in over 30, should be forgotten about. I don’t think Horan and Hayes can be considered for next year anyway, so we have to look alsewhere. Even Flannery needs a break.
There is enough experience now around to at least be competitive over there. We never win much away there anyway, so whats to lose. I don’t like the unwilling ness to try young players in ireland. Its already made a balls of the last WC.
The players are crocked lads, at least some of the Munster players are. My “source” tells me that the medical and fitness staff are worried about a number of players.
PO’C is in a very hairy position apparently, and may struggle to ever get right.
An Ireland squad of 33 players, including three uncapped players, has been announced for the 2010 summer tour to New Zealand and Australia.
The Ireland squad includes three uncapped players with forwards Chris Henry and Dan Tuohy making the tour party as competition in the back row and second row respectively.
The other uncapped player is Fergus McFadden who, along with Tuohy, will be making their first senior tour for Ireland.
Ireland will begin the tour with a game against the Barbarians in Thomond Park on Friday 4 June before flying out for a meeting with New Zealand in New Plymouth on 12 June.
The New Zealand Maoris team is the next opposition for Ireland in Rotorua on 18 June as part of the Maoris centenary celebrations. The final game of the tour will see Ireland playing their Rugby World Cup Pool C opponents Australia in Brisbane on 26 June.
Ireland squad for their 2010 summer tour to New Zealand and Australia: Rory Best, Tommy Bowe, Tony Buckley, Tom Court,
Sean Cronin, Gordon D’Arcy, Keith Earls, Jerry Flannery,
John Hayes, Cian Healy, Jamie Heaslip, Chris Henry, Marcus Horan,
Shane Horgan, Shane Jennings, Robert Kearney, Fergus McFadden, Kevin McLaughlin, John Muldoon, Geordan Murphy, Donncha O’Callaghan, Paul O’Connell, Mick O’Driscoll, Brian O’Driscoll, Ronan O’Gara, Tomas O’Leary, Eoin Reddan, Jonathan Sexton, Peter Stringer, Andrew Trimble, Dan Tuohy, David Wallace, Paddy Wallace
Mother of God. :rolleyes:
Happy to see McFadden, Muldoon, Henry, Cronin, Touhy in. Can’t BOD playing anything other than the 2 big guns. Paulie is going for the holiday really and a bit of support, possibly a decision he’s making himself as much as anything. Thin on the ground for 2nd rows though if we got an injury on top of POC. Awful shame Donnacha Ryan can’t go.
Really shows where Toner and Casey and the likes are though.
If it were the British Lions then the Ireland part of Britain would be taking this tour a lot more seriously I’d imagine. Presume the players will be out beering and whoring the whole time this time around?
is this not a two match tour? two test matches?
Thanks for clearing that up for HBV, mbb.
Thats a pretty retarded thing for even you to say.
Kev’s “source” will be raging that he wasn’t listened to here.
No real surprises in the squad. No glaring ommissions and the promotions are deserved and expected. Bad timing for Donncha Ryan alright - this could have been a chance for him to get himself in the top 4 anyway (fighting it out with Cullen) but otherwise there’s a pretty strong test team there.
I hear the arguments about giving youth an opportunity but a tour down under isn’t the ideal place to be starting out (unless you’re part of an experienced team as BOD was when he was first picked). Chucking in a load of debutatnts together achieves nothing as they’re not joining a settled side with established patterns. It’s far more beneficial to make a small number of changes thatn a whole host of them.
I’ve heard this too and from a fairly good medical source who has a good friend directly involved in his treatment.
I’d totally agree with you in normal circumstances, but i don’t think these are “normal” for a number of irish players. POC, BOD, Wallace, Hayes etc have been going since around August 2008 more or less non stop. I know they get physical rest throughout the season, but i think the travelling alone and the mental fatigue will do much more damage than good. I’d rather look after our best players and find out what some others are made of than bring all the old guys, burn them out and restrict the younger players in the process. Now i realise it may mean we are less competitive than we’d like, but England did it, albeit a year earlier.
We are going back there next season before WC aren’t we? For friendlies?